The NCCU-WFU Biomedical Sciences Bridge Partnership is a Bridges to the Future initiative for the training of M.S. students in the Department of Biology at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) to continue in their Ph.D. training at the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at Wake Forest University (WFU). Our goal to create and maintain a "research environment" at NCCU will be achieved by maintaining strong research programs through NCCU's J.L. Chambers Biomedical/ Biotechnology Research Institute (JLC-BBRI), by increasing awareness of the NCCU-WFU Bridge Partnership program among Ph.D.-directed candidates, selecting graduate students with potential for success, and nurturing them through laboratory research and research-related activities. Our goal to foster the "research thinking process" among graduate students will be achieved by promoting level Ill cognitive skills into coursework. Our goal to bridge students into an advanced position when entering the Ph.D. phase of their training, yet diminishing the social disadvantage, will be implemented by developing faculty research collaborations between institutions so that students can work on aspects of the project at both institutions, and by fostering joint programs between students at NCCU and WFU. The NCCU-WFU Biomedical Sciences Bridge Partnership proposes to take advantage of the unique research environment of the JLC-BBRI on the NCCU campus by making available to underrepresented minority students the dual environments of an active biomedical research facility and the HBCU community. To achieve these goals, we are requesting support for 3 graduate assistantships, tuition, health insurance, computers and travel to an annual scientific meeting for 3 M.S. students in year one, to increase to 6 students in year three. We are also requesting 3 years of support for a program administrator and office assistant at 25% effort each, and support supplies and travel cost related to the administration of this program. Support of students via the NCCU-WFU Biomedical Sciences Bridge Partnership will solidify the existing effective inter-institutional partnership between NCCU and WFU that will improve the quantity, but more importantly, the quality, of the next generation of underrepresented minority scientists in the U.S.